Do not buy value RAM - you get what you pay for, and it will not work with your Mac.

The Kingston RAM you speak of is not Kingston's Mac-compatible RAM, it is their ValueRAM PC Generic (KVR-) series that is not guaranteed for Macintosh.

Kingston Apple RAM (the KTA- series) is good RAM; but the KVR- series is a risk as to whether it will work or not.

If you are buying RAM online, especially if you are a new Mac user, my advice is to choose a reputable vendor who tests and guarantees compatibility with your model Mac, has a lifetime warranty and offers a no-cost return for refund if it doesn't work. This would not include NewEgg, Fry's/Outpost or most PC discounters, who don't offer a Mac compatibility guarantee.

Some MR readers like Crucial despite their pricing, some like RAMJet. If you are in the USA I recommend Data Memory Systems who are a real Mac company.

If you are a Mac expert and want to take the risk of using PC Generic RAM in hopes of saving a few bucks (versus perhaps wasting money and time on shipping it back), that's up to you.

I wouldn't even take Kingston ValueRAM if it was given to me for free.

OtherWorld Computing has their own brand as well as TechWorks RAM, both of which are just fine in Apple machines and much better quality.

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I agree. I only use Rams from Crucial or Samsung OEM (OWC sells them on the cheap). I only want to put in Ram once and forget about it for the rest of computer's life; the last thing I want to do is to touble shoot the ram related problems by opening up the notebook and all. Quality ram from Crucial or Samsung should outlast the machine itself.

Do not buy value RAM - you get what you pay for, and it will not work with your Mac.

The Kingston RAM you speak of is not Kingston's Mac-compatible RAM, it is their ValueRAM PC Generic (KVR-) series that is not guaranteed for Macintosh.

Kingston Apple RAM (the KTA- series) is good RAM; but the KVR- series is a risk as to whether it will work or not.

If you are buying RAM online, especially if you are a new Mac user, my advice is to choose a reputable vendor who tests and guarantees compatibility with your model Mac, has a lifetime warranty and offers a no-cost return for refund if it doesn't work. This would not include NewEgg, Fry's/Outpost or most PC discounters, who don't offer a Mac compatibility guarantee.

Some MR readers like Crucial despite their pricing, some like RAMJet. If you are in the USA I recommend Data Memory Systems who are a real Mac company.

If you are a Mac expert and want to take the risk of using PC Generic RAM in hopes of saving a few bucks (versus perhaps wasting money and time on shipping it back), that's up to you.

Thanks guys, I was about to buy the kingston value ram. Even though I live in Canada, I'll probably go with Crucial. Even with the exchange rate it seems to be the best price out there for a 512 meg chip.

Thanks again for your help. I would never have known kingston/corsair value ram was not compatible with macs.

Thanks guys, I was about to buy the kingston value ram. Even though I live in Canada, I'll probably go with Crucial. Even with the exchange rate it seems to be the best price out there for a 512 meg chip.

Thanks again for your help. I would never have known kingston/corsair value ram was not compatible with macs.

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I had a Windows XP machine with 256 MB of HP-installed RAM and two 512 MB sticks of Kingston ValueRAM re-boot 30+ times on a Friday until we removed the rubbish.

The previous Win2000 machine had some of it too and would re-boot randomly through the day.

Just thought I'd save you the time and hassle CanadaRAM - I always think you must get tired of responding to these RAM questions time after time!

Let's just say I've always paid close attention to what you've said in previous threads and have "stored away" some goodies throughout your posts that I have found myself referencing at times. As long as you don't mind me doing that, that is...

Due to what I have read in the past, as well as some experience, I will only buy official apple RAM now... You DO get what you pay for

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Erm, OK, if that works for you. I have some real difficulty with Apple charging $500 with a 1 year warranty for the exact same Samsung module that's available for half the price, with a lifetime warranty.

What you are getting is coverage under the Apple warranty and only one finger to point.

Because Apple buys the same modules from Samsung, Hynix, Micron and IBM that reputable Mac RAM resellers do, the deliverable product may be the same. There have been posts on other forums where Apple service have sent back warranty repairs with "Bad third-party RAM" notices when in fact the RAM was Apple's in a BTO machine.

Erm, OK, if that works for you. I have some real difficulty with Apple charging $500 with a 1 year warranty for the exact same Samsung module that's available for half the price, with a lifetime warranty.

What you are getting is coverage under the Apple warranty and only one finger to point.

Because Apple buys the same modules from Samsung, Hynix, Micron and IBM that reputable Mac RAM resellers do, the deliverable product may be the same. There have been posts on other forums where Apple service have sent back warranty repairs with "Bad third-party RAM" notices when in fact the RAM was Apple's in a BTO machine.

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Yep, great points CanadaRAM - as you say, Apple uses the same modules as other RAM vendors use, so one questions what exactly you're paying extra for. If a person doesn't mind paying extra for a 1-year warranty instead of a lifetime warranty, and paying extra for the same RAM modules they could get for half the price, that's their prerogative I suppose.

well ki've got an extra 512mb of viking ram in my ibook. it wasn't the cheapest but cheaper than crucial (i'm in canada) and still adds tonnes of power to my otherwise budget ibook. it still has a lifetime warraty and after 6 months i haven't had to think about it. i would avoid corsair and simpletech and similar brands, but i'll keep viking in my good books if i get an imac in the future.

Definitely not the Kingston, and there are some good posts on this thread. You should definitely check for compatibility and look for appropriate warranty coverage. That said, however, Corsair makes good RAM (I've never used the value line personally, but I have installed it in client computers and it's never caused problems). I've known people to use the Corsair DDR333 SO-DIMMs in Apple computers with absolutely no trouble.

I'm not encouraging buying RAM that isn't Mac-tested, but I do want to stick up for Corsair in that Kingston is not even on the same planet in terms of quality.

Definitely not the Kingston, and there are some good posts on this thread. You should definitely check for compatibility and look for appropriate warranty coverage. That said, however, Corsair makes good RAM (I've never used the value line personally, but I have installed it in client computers and it's never caused problems). I've known people to use the Corsair DDR333 SO-DIMMs in Apple computers with absolutely no trouble.

I'm not encouraging buying RAM that isn't Mac-tested, but I do want to stick up for Corsair in that Kingston is not even on the same planet in terms of quality.

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We sell Kingston and Corsair and Crucial -- Don't know what your experience is that lead you to the conclusion Kingston was sub-par, just in our experience we have never run into any concerns with Kingston quality -- as long as the right model is installed.

Corsair does have Apple memory: for example CMSS1GB-333G4SOD is their 1 Gb for the PB 15" 1.0 and 1.25, and 17" 1.0 and 1.33. Note that this is not their regular part number for generic 1 Gb SODIMMs, but a specific number for these powerbooks.

Their TwinX and CMX memory however is not intended for Apples, and their Value Select is generic (not guaranteed compatible one way or the other)

We sell Kingston and Corsair and Crucial -- Don't know what your experience is that lead you to the conclusion Kingston was sub-par, just in our experience we have never run into any concerns with Kingston quality.

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Same here - never had any problems with kingston ram - at least on my PC machines (i'm pretty new to the apple world)

I agree with CanadaRAM; Kingston and Corsair have very good lines of value RAM that I've had good experiences with. Neither the Kingston Value RAM in my Powerbook nor the Corsair in my PC have ever given me problems. You get what you pay for: reliable, inexpensive RAM that isn't really much slower than the much more expensive lines (we're talking a few percentage points at best in most benchmarks).

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